A NEWTON Abbot coach firm has had its licence revoked after the area traffic commissioner ruled that it has lost its good repute and was without financial standing.
Duchy Travel, based at the Decoy Industrial Estate, went into liquidation in July last year.
Late last year, the company was fined £50,000 and ordered to pay costs of £25,000 after employee Craig Potter, a father of three from Newton Abbot, was crushed to death by a vehicle in the company's workshop in August 2002.
The company has not paid the fine because of financial difficulties.
At a public inquiry last Thursday, Western traffic commissioner Philip Brown revoked the company's licence with immediate effect and disqualified 'indefinitely' the company holding a public service vehicle licence.
The inquiry heard that the company had failed to inform the traffic area office that it had gone into liquidation until the end of August and did not notify them of a change of directors.
Mr Brown said that the liquidation testified that the firm 'was clearly without financial standing'.
Mr Brown considered the conviction following the fatal accident.
'The operator, as a result of that conviction, has lost its good repute,' he said.
No disqualifications were made against the company's directors at the time, Norman Squires and his son Andrew.
The inquiry heard that Town and Country Coaches Ltd, run by Norman Squires, took over services that were registered to Duchy Travel when it went into liquidation, but did not inform the traffic area office, contravening the 1985 traffic act.
In interview, Mr Squires said that he was unaware that he had to notify the office of the changes to service and also a change of directors.
Mr Brown said that it is 'not an excuse, but an explanation'.
The company will not be able to run any local services for six months, were fined £5,400 and given a formal warning.
Mr Squires was given credit for his subsequent action when 'the error of his ways was pointed out'.
A licence application for new company Town and Country Continental Limited was granted for Andrew Squires and his wife Charlene.
The application is 'inextricably bound up with the other two cases', said Mr Brown.
He raised concern that Mr Squires was a director of Duchy Travel at the time of the liquidation and fatal accident but found the new company to be 'of good repute'.
The company was granted a licence from April 30 to allow arrangements for a transport manager to be finalised.
This could be reviewed if arrangements were settled before that date, said Mr Brown.
After the hearing, Paul Carless, acting for the companies, said that his client was 'very pleased with the outcome'.
'They hope to be able to continue to provide a high level of service that they provided for many years in this part of Devon.
Mr Carless said: 'They wish to reiterate their great regret at the death of Craig Potter and the circumstances in which it happened.
'It was a dreadful shock to everyone.'